MSt in Philosophical Theology

About the course

The Master of Studies (MSt) in Philosophical Theology offers graduates in either philosophy or theology the opportunity to undertake advanced study in a field bridging the two disciplines.

With a tutor, you will study two areas of philosophical theology chosen from the philosophy of religion, the history of philosophical theology, or a more specialised area of theology. For each area, depending on the subject and supervisor, you will have six or eight tutorials of 60 to 90 minutes in duration. For each tutorial, you will write an essay of approximately 3,000 to 5,000 words. Tutorials consist of close scrutiny and discussion of the essay and the issues it raises. In addition to your tutorial work, you will also write a dissertation of 15,000 words, under the direction of a supervisor. The Faculty of Theology and Religion has a lively graduate community of students, including reading and work-in-progress groups.

Assessment

In addition to informal feedback on tutorial essays and drafts of the dissertation, at the end of the year, students are assessed via a 15,000-word dissertation and two unseen three-hour written exams.

Graduate destinations

Students who leave the University of Oxford with graduate degrees in theology enter a variety of careers all around the world. Over half of those who gain an MSt or MPhil proceed to further, usually doctoral, study. Most of the others secure employment as, for example, school teachers, civil servants or parliamentary research assistants or go on to work with non-governmental organisations or in the media and journalism.

As a minimum, applicants should hold or be predicted to achieve the equivalent of the following UK qualifications: a first-class or strong upper second-class (67% or above) undergraduate degree with honours in philosophy, theology, religious studies or a closely related field. Admission is very competitive. For applicants with a degree from the USA, the minimum GPA sought is 3.8 out of 4.0.